A “golden cross” is what technical analysts call the point where the 50-day moving average–widely seen as a short-term trend tracker–crosses above the 200-day moving average, which is used to gauge the long-term trend.

They feel this event marks the spot that a short-term bounce transitions to a longer-term uptrend.

The last golden cross in the S&P 500 appeared Jan. 31, 2012, when the index closed at 1312.41. Miller Tabak Chief Economic Strategist Andrew Wilkinson noted the S&P 500 has only closed below 1312 seven times since and has advanced by nearly 200 points, or 15%: “A real golden rally,” he said.